Chapter 248: Candidate

The starry sky stretched infinitely.

The mountains on the ground also stretched endlessly.

Above the clouds, the Hall of Heroic Souls had subtly changed—each heroic soul had added its own color.

Stars adorned heroes and history, while the rising and falling roars of beasts across the wasteland gave this night a living hue.

At some point, murals had appeared depicting the tales of heroes: ancient sages busying themselves in alchemical chambers, judgmental knights hunting evil across the wasteland, and the fearless hero standing alone against the colossal beast that held up heaven and earth.

"Where is this?"

When the first young man stepped in cloaked in shadow, he was naturally awed by the scene.

Stretching before him were mountains beyond the ancient hall; beneath the unobstructed cliffs floated boundless white clouds, and occasionally, giant birds and flying dragons rose.

This sight reminded the onlookers of the cloud-city from myths, yet the tranquil wind and scenery, the statues and murals each telling stories and history, felt more like the realm of the gods in legend.

"This is the Hall of Heroic Souls."

A cold voice sounded beside him; beneath the dais, a black-armored knight silently regarded him.

"Don't block the way."

Behind him, other shadows entered through individual void-gates, stepping onto this vast stage resembling an ancient arena.

This time, the number of entrants was especially large—young figures from every corner of the world stepped inside.

They differed in race and age; among them were beast-touched, elves, and even towering giants forcibly shrunk to human size.

One, two... when the shadows reached twelve, no new entrants appeared.

This time, Li En did not see any absurdly abnormal lives, so he did not kick anyone out—but having seen through the shadows, he was satisfied with this haul.

These newcomers all looked incredibly strong; no wonder they were selected across continents.

Among them, Li En naturally spotted several familiar faces.

Little Laina stepped in dazed, naturally blocked by the crowd. Notably, she was not the youngest here—a tiny floating elf quietly perched on her shoulder.

Hela stepped in and immediately stared at the man on the dais. The man still regarded the youths with his usual careless demeanor, but Li En sensed his inner unease.

Thanks to Rosalind's attack, Lex had finally decided to take some responsibility; otherwise, it might have been Li En himself standing on this stage in this guise.

And Li En might truly not have been able to hold the line this time.

"Silence."

The calm words echoed throughout the hall, their thunderous resonance shocking every onlooker.

But this was only the beginning—only now did everyone notice the young warrior on the dais.

He stood there with arms crossed, wearing a silver mask; though his expression was calm, he radiated overwhelming pressure.

Some in the crowd showed signs of shock—they might have recognized the figure from legends and tales.

"My candidates, don't give the seniors' students a reason to laugh."

Only then did they notice void-gates opening one by one, as individuals entered the hall, some hurried, others slow.

The newcomers seemed to know each other; they exchanged greetings and stepped aside, as if yielding the "center stage"—this suggested the event was not new, and even carried unspoken procedures and rules.

"Silence. This is the place of Heroic Souls' legacy."

Li En's shadow had dissipated; since the "class reunion" was formed, he had become a public figure serving as a liaison.

Unlike previous Heroic Soul successions, this one was made more formal because the candidates' status was exceptional.

This time, Li En did not trouble Dainya—he introduced the basic situation himself.

"To be blunt: I'm taking a disciple. The Hall of Heroic Souls says you're eligible as candidates. Whether you're accepted? That's my call."

As Li En was halfway through his introduction, Lex suddenly interrupted him.

He still had his arms crossed, scanning left and right—his domineering presence was unmistakable.

This time, unlike Suhl's approachability or Kuku's scholarly air, this was plainly official business.